Wood-joint



(No Model.)

J. N. HIERONYMUS.

WOOD JOINT.

No. 477,118. Patented June 14, 1892.

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UNTTED STATES PATENT OFFICE.

JASPER N. HIERONYMUS, OF FAIRBURY, ILLINOIS.

WOOD-JOINT.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No.4'7'7,118, dated June14, 1892.

Application filed October 9, I891. $eria1llo. 408,286. (No model.)

To aZZ whom it may concern.-

Be it known that I, JASPER N. IIIERONY- MUS, a citizen of the UnitedStates, residing at Fairbury, in the county of Livingston and State ofIllinois, haveinvented anew and useful \VoodJoint, of which thefollowing is a specification.

This invention relates to carpentry, and more especially to that classthereof known as splices and joints; and the object of the same is toproduce an improved means for connecting two wooden members.

To this end the invention consists in a joint of the characterhereinafter more fully described and claimed,and as illustrated on theaccompanying sheet of drawings, wherein- Figure l is a perspectivedetail of a tenon with a hook and s reader-1i)late slightly removedtherefrom and showing the tip of the tenon as above a holein ablock ofwood, said block being in section through the hole. Fig. 2 is a sideelevation of the same parts (also giving a section of the block) inposition ready to be connected. Fig. 3 is a similar View after the partsare connected. Fig. 4 is a section through two flat members, showingthem connected by a slightly-modified form of my device. Fig. 5 is apersective detail of the plug and double hook, which is used in Fig. 4.

It is well known in carpentry that where a tenon on one member is to bedriven into another member (which I will call the block glue must beused to keep the tenon from drawing out, the hole in the block must beenlarged at its inner end, and the tip of the tenon spread, as by awedge, after it is inserted or in the act of driving. A transverse pinmust be passed through the block and tenon or some other means must beemployed to prevent the separation of the members. This necessity arisesin all cases where a Wood-joint of this character is to be formed, suchas in the rungs of chairs, the corners of bedsteads, desks, and otherpieces of furniture, the corners of window and door frames, and atnumerous other points known to the carpenter and cabinet-maker where twowooden members are connected by a tenon (or even a tongue and groove)whether the tenon is integral with one or whether it be a plug enteringeach of two members. A similar necessity arises when two flat members orblocks are to be connected without a tenon or a tongue and groove andwhere for any reason it may be undesirable to use a screw or a bolt.

My present invention contemplates the provision of means for elfecting arigid and permanent connection between such wooden members, to which endit consists in a joint of the construction described below. I do not,however, desire to be limited to the use of this device for the purposedescribed or mentioned, as other occasions which do not occur to me atthis writing may arise in which a joint of this character would behighly advantageous, especially if the materials of parts be slightlychanged.

Referring to the said drawings, the letter B designates a block, inwhich is bored a hole H of a size to receive a tenon T, which may beround, as shown, or of any other suitable cross-section.

S is a spreader-plate, which is bent across its body at about rightangles, as at A, and which is of a size adapting it to be passed intothe hole and put into position therein, as seen in Fig. 2, with itsangle uppermost.

M is a metallic hook, preferably flattened and curved slightly,especially toward its tip, as shown at F. The body of this hook isnormally straight, or nearly so, and its upper end E is bent at rightangles to said body. There may be any number of these hooks, though onlyone is shown in use.

In connecting the members by my improved joint the following steps aretaken: A notch or groove G is formed longitudinally in the v side of thetenon, terminating at its upper end in a small transverse hole 71,passing into the body of the tenon. The spreader-plate S is inserted inthe hole 11 in the manner above described and so that one of its beveledsides will stand under the point where the groove is to come, and theangle of the plate is tapped gently, so as to curve its ends a trifleand embed them in the sides of the hole, as seen in dotted lines in Fig.2. The upper end E of the hook is then inserted in the hole 72 the bodyof this hook standing in the groove and its pointed and flattenedportion projecting beyond the end of the tenon. The latter, with thehook applied, is then passed into the mouth of the hole II in the block3, when the parts Will be in the position shown in Fig. 2. The tenon isthen driven in, and this operation turns the flattened portion of thehook upwardly in the body of the block, as shown ICO at U in Fig. 3,thus forming the hook, by

c which I have designated this part throughout. The beveled face of thespreader-plate deflects the tip of the hook as the latter is driven inand causes it to curve outwardly and upwardly, as is desirable, thebottom of the groove G preventing the body of the hook moving toward thecenter of the hole H during this operation. When the end of the tenonreaches the angle A in the spreaderplate, a further driving of the tenonof course flattens out the plate and its ends pass under the hooks,while its body assumes the position shown in Fig. 3 at the finish of thedriving. At this time the tenon is deeply and firmly seated in the holeand locked therein by the ends E and U of the hook, which respectivelyengage the tenon and the block. Of course the end E could be bent at anacute angle, if preferred, or it could be continued through the tenon;but the latter modification I will describe at length farther on.Obviously there could be another hook at the other side of the tenon andengaging the other beveled face of the spreader-plate; or if the holewere long and the angle of said plate stood longitudinally of the holethere could be several hooks on each side of the tenon, the only limitation being that no hook must strike the angle of the plate.

In Fig. 5 is shown a double hook M, which is simply two single hookswhose ends are connected and form the bend of this hook, as seen at E.In the use of this hook the hole h would have to be continuedentirelythrough the tenon and there would have to be two grooves G andone of the arms of the hook would have to be straight and in alignmentwith the bend E, as seen in dotted lines. After this arm is passedthrough the hole in the tenon it is bent down, so as to stand in thegroove G at that side of the tenon, its point given a slight curvature,as seen in full lines, and the tenon is applied in the manner abovedescribed; but it sometimes occurs that two flat members or blocks Bare' to be connected, as shown in Fig. 4, and this double hook becomesavailable in that case, a plug P being substituted for the tenon. Thedouble hook (which may of course be of any desired length) is bent intothe form of a staple and its straight ends passed entirely through thesmaller block B, as seen, this block being preferably provided with arecess R, wherein is countersunk the bend E. The larger block isprovided with the hole H, and the spreader-plate S, above described, isseated in the bottom thereof. The plug P is provided withdiametricallyopposite grooves G, corresponding with the grooves in thetenon, except that they extend completely to the upper end of the plug.The latter is then inserted between the arms of the double hook andpressed up against the face of the smaller block, the grooves receivingsaid arms, as will be clear. The outer ends of the hooks arethen given aslight curvature in Fig. 4. The driving of the parts in this mannerturns the end of each arm of the double hook upwardly at U, the same as1n the case of a single hook, and obviously 1nstead of a plug a longstrip might be used which would fit a groove instead of the hole H,there being several double hooks over this strip. I

lVhat is claimed as new 1s 1. A Wood-joint comprising one member havingan opening in one side, a plate wider than the opening and engaging thewalls of the same, a second member terl'ninating in a tenon and fittingsaid opening and having a longitudinal groove at its end and anapproximately transverse hole at the upper end of the groove, and ahook, its body lying in said groove, its upper end being bent at anangle and seated in said hole and its lower end deflected by the plateand hooked into the body of the first member.

2. A wood-joint comprising one member having an opening in one side, asecond member fitting said opening and having a longitudinal groove withan approximately trans verse hole at its upper end, a hook with its bodylying in said groove, its upper end bent at an angle and seated in saidhole and its lower endcurved outwardly and upwardly from the secondmember into the body of the first, and a plate between the bottom of thehole in the first member and the inner end of the second member, with anend projecting beyond the wall of said hole and under the bend of saidhook.

3. A wood-joint comprising a member having an opening in one side,adefiecting-plate Wider than the opening mounted therein and engagingthe walls thereof, a second member fitting said opening and havinglongitudinal grooves in its opposite faces, whose upper ends areconnected, and a double hook with its arms lying in said grooves, itsbend connecting the arms above said grooves, and its lower endsdeflected outwardly by the plate and hooked into the body of the firstmember.

4. The combination, with one member having a hole in one side and aspreader-plate bent at an angle and seated in said hole with its angleuppermost, of a second member of a size to fit said hole and a hookmember set into the wall of this member and projecting beyond the endthereof in a line above one of k the beveled faces of said plate, as andfor the JASPER N. HIERONYMUS.

WVitnesses:

NIMROD MAPEL, JOHN MAPEL.

